As you’ve heard by now unless you don’t follow anything iPod-related, Apple put out an application update for the iPod touch. It costs $20 and adds a bunch of useful new applications. Generally accepted reasoning is that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act is to blame for Apple charging for it. A great recap on that argument is here.
Which begs the question that if the 802.11n enabler was $2, why was the application update $20? Why not $2? The generally accepted reason is Apple are charging what people will pay1.
I’d like to float a different theory. This is a complete wild guess, mind you, but since I’m currently watching progress bars in another window I have very little else to do but type crazy theories.
I think Apple is charging $20 so they can realize the revenue using a subscription model without it looking ridiculous on paper. Why might they want to do this? Because then they can add additional features to anyone who’s paid the $20 without accounting problems.
This would have been stupid for the 802.11n enabler. There are quite simply no more magic hardware features to pull out of the hat. Any new features, then, will be unarguably software, and will probably come in the form of a for-fee 10.6 “Lion”2.
I guess we’ll know when Apple adds features that aren’t simply updates and fixes to the shipped applications. My theory is that it’ll be free for anyone who purchased the application upgrade, and not available to those who haven’t.
What does it matter? Well, you need to look at what major feature is on the horizon for the iPod touch.
Third party applications.
Yeah, it’s hard to argue that supporting third party applications isn’t a major new feature.
So my prediction, and I’ve been wrong many times before, is simple: Installing a third party application will require that you have installed the “application update” and paid the $20 fee.
Because here at tewha.net, we’re not afraid to make wild-assed guesses based on no facts at all.